


a fortuitous meeting

by mutents



Series: look upon this fine collection [1]
Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Being Lost, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 09:05:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12861279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mutents/pseuds/mutents
Summary: Cosette was lost.She'd been walking through the corridors of the Louvre with her Papa just a few minutes earlier, but at one point she had stopped going at the usual place, pausing to look closer at a statue. When she'd turned back to catch up with her father, though, he was gone.





	a fortuitous meeting

Cosette was lost.

She'd been walking through the corridors of the Louvre with her Papa just a few minutes earlier, but at one point she had stopped going at the usual place, pausing to look closer at a statue. When she'd turned back to catch up with her father, though, he was gone.

Cosette had been told once by her Papa that if she got lost she was supposed to stay in one place. While it made sense, she knew that he had to be near by. Despite being so tall, he tended to take smaller steps to keep pace with her. He had to be close, so she started walking down the nearby hallways, trying to find him.

After nearly ten minutes, the only thing Cosette had accomplished was getting more lost. She felt her eyes beginning to well; she was looking around at a sea of adults, but none of them were her adult.

She quietly stepped to the side of the room, standing in between two paintings. She decided that it was better late than never to listen to her Papa. Leaning against the wall, she slid down, sitting on the ground and wrapping her arms around her legs.

She looked down at the small watch her Papa had given her for a present a few months earlier, smiling sadly at the face. When she looked back up, though, she realized she was being watched.

Sitting on  one of the padded benches sat a man around her Papa's age - but where there was always a twinkle in his eyes, this man's were serious. After another few seconds he pushed himself to his feet and slowly began to approach her. Without saying a word, he settled onto the floor next to her with a groan.

"Every thing alright?" The man asked, his eyes scanning the room instead of watching her.

Cosette stayed quiet, burrowing her face deeper into her knees and wrapping her arms tighter.

"Not talking to me, that's good. Your parent's taught you well - never talking to strangers is a good rule of thumb. But," he said, letting out a grunt and reaching into his pants pocket, pulling out a wallet and opening it for her to see it's contents. "You can trust me." She reached out slowly, wanting to run her fingers over the well polished metal. "It's alright, you can look more closely," he continued, offering her the wallet and badge. "My name's Inspector Javert. I work for the National Police. Did you get separated from your mother and father?"

She took the leather wallet from his hands, letting her fingers ghost of the brass, not touching it for fear of smudging it. "My Papa," she said quietly, letting out a sniffle.

"Alright. Can you tell me what your Papa's name is?"

She nodded, looking back at the older man. "Jean Valjean. And I'm Cosette."

Something in the man's face shifted when Cosette told him her father's name - she couldn't pinpoint the emotion that crossed his face, but she knew something was off.

"That's very good, Cosette. Sometimes kids your age can't remember details like that."

Cosette shrugged, looking back down at the badge. "He's not technically my father. He adopted me from some bad people last year. I only started calling him Papa last month. But, I'm a lot happier with him."

"I'm glad you are. Now, do you remember where you last saw your father?"

Cosette nodded again. "I was looking at the statues. There was a really pretty one of a woman with arrows and a deer. I stopped to look at it longer, and when I looked up he was gone."

Javert nodded again. "That's  _Diana of Versailles_. I know exactly where to go back to. Hopefully if we go back there, he'll be looking for you."

Cosette watched as Javert pushed himself to his feet, once more with a groan, then offered her his hand.

* * *

Cosette had spent the entire walk back to the statue with her hand in the Inspector's. While he didn't make her feel quite as safe as her Papa did, he still was a reassuring presence. He hadn't bothered with any worthless commentary, which Cosette appreciated.

As they reached a familiar area, Cosette started to walk a little faster. He eyes quickly scanned the crowd, searching desperately for her Papa. After several seconds she finally spotted him, talking hysterically to a guard who only looked unimpressed. Slipping out of Javert's hand, she quickly rushed across the room, calling for her father.

Valjean spun on his heels, kneeling as soon as he realized who it was and opening his arms for her.

"Oh, Cosette, my dear... You terrified me... I thought you had been kidnapped or something!" He pulled away from her placing his hands on her shoulder and looking her in the eyes. "What did I tell you to do if you got lost?"

"To stay in place," Cosette said, her voice trailing off. "But I thought you were near by... I ended up just getting more lost, though."

"How did you find your way back?" He asked, tilting his head with questioning eyes.

"Valjean, at last," Javert said, stepping up next to them.

Her father stood up quickly, watching the Inspector closely. "Javert."

"You have a charming daughter, Jean," the Inspector said, nodding towards her. "Extremely brilliant. Knew exactly what statue she was looking at before you split up."

Valjean stayed silent, keeping a watchful eye on Javert. "Thank you."

"I imagine that she's the one you snuck out on that date to save." Valjean nodded. "The one with the woman only you could help." Valjean nodded again. Javert looked back at Cosette, giving her a warm smile before looking back up at Valjean. "I think she was worth it, Jean." He paused. "Though you still could have called."

 


End file.
